Thursday, December 21, 2006

Day 43 - The Sweet -Little Willy

So maybe it is a little goofy, but this song has a great beat, some seriously cool switches, and was so fun to torment my little brother with. (I think he has forgiven me by now.)

As far as the band goes this little blurb says a lot about the band itself:

Formed in England in 1968 by Tucker and Connolly who first met as members of Middlesex pop outfit Wainwright's Gentlemen. Group split up and Mick and Brian recruited Frank Torpey and Steve Priest to form the Sweet Shop, soon shortened to The Sweet. Recorded a string a flop singles in true Bubblegum spirit by featuring Connolly on vocals and the rest of Sweet being replaced by studio musicians. Releasing singles on the Fontana and Parlophone labels, The Lollipop Man, All You'll Ever Get From Me, Get On The Line (written by The Archie's songwriting team Barry/Kim), and It's Lonely Out There were typical of chart dominating American Bubblegum and totally inconspicuous amongst their other, weaker Monkee/Herman Hermits material. Torpey left and Andy Scott was recruited to add a heavier rock sound and they subsequently met British songwriting ream Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman in 1970. Chinn-Chapman along with Phil Wainman produced and wrote their singles over the next four years. The collaboration worked and they were greeted with U.K. success as Funny Funny, Co-Co, Poppa Joe, Wig Wam Bam, Blockbuster and Hellraiser made the charts. Little Willy (They said "Little Willy"!) and Ballroom Blitz were big U.S. hits as well and became instantly recognizable Bubblegum classics (Mike Myers acknowledged this in Wayne's World). On stage, Sweet mixed elements of Glam with outrageous costumes (Indian attire for Wig Wam Bam; oh, the influence of 1910 Fruitgum Co.!) and sexually-charged theatrics with their hybrid Bubblegum/Heavy Rock repertoire. The group was still augmented by studio sessionmen although they were allowed to record self-penned B-sides. By their third full album, the classic 1974 DESOLATION BOULEVARD, they attempted to rid themselves of restrictive bubblegum image by splitting from Chinn-Chapman and proved immediately that they could survive on their own when Fox On The Run became a big hit. They followed up with hits Action and Love Is Like Oxygen in 1979. Brian Connolly left the group after LEVEL HEADED failed and Sweet developed into a hard rock group without much success before splitting in 1982. Andy Scott continues to tour as AS Sweet and Connolly died in February 1997

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About Me

I am a happily married lady living and working in the great northwest all my life. I have 3 cats and 2 doggies I affectionately call my furry kids as we have not been blessed with a human bundle of joy just yet. I am an aspiring lead vocalist, but also enjoy drawing, painting, and a good book from time to time. :)